Contributed
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| Michael Spence |
At 1:00 a.m. near Bog Walk Gorge, armed men in an unmarked car tried to stop me. No uniform, no markings, just guns. I kept driving to Angels, where I stopped among parked truckers. Then, they claimed to be police. They listened to me and left.
Later on, on another occasion on Mandela Highway, a marked car stopped me in an isolated spot. I slowed with hazards on and stopped only at the busy, lit Cooreville, Duhaney Park crossing, tires screeching, attention.
Uniformed officers, after a brief civil discussion, understood my plight and drove off.
These stops show the problem: criminals impersonate police, and real police sometimes use poorly marked vehicles at night.
For drivers, safety means light + witnesses before stopping. But JCF doesn’t publicize that procedure enough.
The law is clear. Deadly force is for imminent threats to life only. Shooting at a fleeing vehicle usually fails that test. Mens rea + actus reus = murder. Actus reus alone = manslaughter. INDECOM exists to hold that line.
The policy must be to obey lawful orders, with police using minimum or only necessary force if at all.
We need marked cars, clear ID protocols, publicized safe-stop rules, and accountability.
Trust in JCF is bruised, but not broken. Rebuild it before more lives are lost to fear and split-second choices.
"Obey the police or get gunshot” cannot be the policy for a civilized democracy.
Contributed by
Michael Spence
Michael Spence is a graduate of Cornwall College and the University of the West Indies. He is a trained teacher, a sociologist, and a writer for Bark Di Trute.
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Well said Mr Spence. Justice for Buju.
ReplyDeleteSo well said sir, thank you we pray those in authority will see this post.
ReplyDelete